It’s not often after a draw one can say a team was lucky to avoid the loss and unfortunate not to walk away with a win, but that perception could easily be applied to the U.S. National Team following its 1-1 tie with England. Robert Green’s blunder, of course, gifted the Yanks with their only tally. But Jozy Altidore’s post-ringing shot in the second half was inches from potentially giving the U.S. all three points.

When all was said and done, the result seemed fair for both sides. For the Red-White-and-Blue, some players stepped up in the World Cup opener (Tim Howard, Jay Demerit) while others disappointed (Ricardo Clark, Robbie Findley). Without further adieu, here are World Soccer Reader’s match ratings for the U.S.

GK Tim Howard, 7: Yes, England developed a habit for blasting shots right at the Everton goalkeeper, but Howard was phenomenal when it came to controlling rebounds. As always, his organizational presence was key for the U.S. backline. There was nothing he really could have done better on Steven Gerrard’s early strike, which he barely missed.

RB Steve Cherundolo, 7: The veteran right back certainly carried over his good form from the tune-up friendlies. His pace going forward forced the foul-happy James Milner into a booking for persistent infringement, and he handled substitute Sean Wright-Phillips’ speed very well.

CB Oguchi Onyewu, 6: A question mark for this match right up until the starting lineups were announced, Onyewu displayed little of the tentativeness that plagued him during recent friendlies as he recovered from a ruptured patellar tendon. Although he was beaten on a couple headers he probably should have won, he made several clutch tackles to help keep England at bay. Playing a full 90 minutes for the first time since October didn’t seem to be a problem.

CB Jay DeMerit, 7: He has developed a tendency to play up and down to his competition, and that trait turned into a real asset against England. A scrappy center back who went from being overlooked in the MLS SuperDraft to playing in the English Premier League, DeMerit had no business bottling up Wayne Rooney for 90 minutes – but that is exactly what he did.

LB Carlos Bocanegra, 5: The U.S. captain had trouble dealing with Aaron Lennon’s speed at times, but he turned in a fine overall performance. His greatest contribution was, and will continue to be, having the versatility to move outside so Sam’s Army doesn’t have to stomach seeing Jonathan Bornstein on the field.

DM Ricardo Clark, 3: Most of the blame for England’s goal has to go to Clark, who lost Gerrard and allowed the English skipper to run in free on Howard. Clark still seems rusty after sitting out much of the Bundesliga season due to injury, and one would think coach Bob Bradley will seriously consider replacing him with Maurice Edu or Jose Torres against Slovenia.

CM Michael Bradley, 5: It was a quiet game for the coach’s son. Although he misfired on a few potentially dangerous through balls, the 22-year-old did his part when it came to silencing Frank Lampard, who was a non-factor for England.

RM Landon Donovan, 7: It would be easy to take Donovan’s work rate and composure on the ball for granted during the rare game in which he doesn’t score or set up a goal. The Yanks’ all-time leading scorer, however, was again the classiest U.S. player on the field, and he probably deserved an assist in the first half when Altidore just missed connecting confidently on his cross.

LM Clint Dempsey, 7: People will remember Green’s howler in goal, but Dempsey deserves credit for working hard to create his own shot and putting the necessary velocity on it to force Green into the mistake. Dempsey again sacrificed his body for the U.S., enduring a barrage of fouls and tracking back time after time to help defensively.

CF Robbie Findley, 4: Findley displayed only glimpses of the confidence he exuded against Turkey and Australia, although the threat of his speed did open up some space for Dempsey and Donovan to operate. He probably did well enough to earn another start alongside Altidore against Slovenia, even though Edson Buddle might be a tempting option.

CF Jozy Altidore, 6: Recovering from last week’s ankle sprain in time to start, Altidore was decent if unspectacular at holding the ball up front and finding open spaces. The barraging run that saw him muscle his way past Jamie Carragher and force Green into a save off the post is a perfect example of why he is such an important player to this U.S. squad.

SUBSTITUTES

CF Edson Buddle, 5: The Los Angeles Galaxy striker didn’t see much of the ball during his limited minutes on the field. It should be interesting to see how prominently he features during the next two matches.

RM Stuart Holden, 4: The late sub should have done better on a cross that richocheted out for a corner kick instead of finding a teammate.

COACH

Bob Bradley, 5: Choosing to partner an out-of-form Clark with Michael Bradley instead of Edu or Torres backfired in a big way when Clark allowed Gerrard to score early. Starting the still-recovering Onyewu, however, did turn out to be the right decision. As England packed on the pressure during the second half, the game screamed for Bradley to insert a possession-oriented player such as Torres or Benny Feilhaber. Instead, he held onto his subs until the final 13 minutes, and it is hard to argue with the strategy because he did end up getting the draw.